Thin Film PV Production Reaching a New High
San Francisco INTERSOLAR N.A., 14 July 2008 - Sunwell, a wholly owned subsidiary of CMC Magnetics, today announced that it has ordered another two end-to-end thin film silicon production lines from Oerlikon Solar. One 60 MW line will be delivered to the existing Sunwell production facility in Taiwan and the other 120 MW line will be shipped to a new site currently under construction. Both lines comprise Oerlikon Solar's latest tandem cell technology, micromorph® raising module efficiency by up to 50 percent. Start of production is scheduled in 2009. "This repeat order validates our leading edge technology and our unique ability to quickly implement and scale up commercially successful mass production", explains Dr. Uwe Krüger, CEO of Oerlikon.
Since the original contract for their first amorphous line was signed in mid 2007, CMC has continued its ambitious plans to rapidly expand production capacity. Oerlikon Solar worked closely with CMC to develop a strategy to quickly upgrade to micromorph® and increase the output of the customer's existing facility. This resulted in a repeat order after only a few months.
With this order, yearly production capacity will reach 226 MW
The addition of 180 MW of micromorph® technology to its existing 46 MW of capacity will help to establish CMC as one of the largest thin film manufacturers in the world. However, CMC will not stop there. It already has plans to double this capacity in the near future.
"To execute our rapid growth plans it was crucial to identify the most competitive and responsive thin film PV equipment supplier. Oerlikon Solar is the right company to deliver on our demanding plans", states Bob Wong, Chairman of CMC Magnetics.
Gigawatt capacity is in sight
It is CMC's goal to reach an annual production output of one gigawatt as the demand for thin film solar panels continues its unprecedented growth. Oerlikon Solar is committed to its important role as a proven and competitive technology partner in the realization of CMC's plans. "With this order CMC signals a long term strategy to continue with Oerlikon's leading proprietary micromorph® tandem cell technology. This sets the stage for an aggressive roadmap to increase efficiency allowing them to head towards grid parity in the near future", says Jeannine Sargent, CEO of Oerlikon Solar.
Oerlikon Solar is addressing the surge in demand
Oerlikon Solar's leading edge production solutions are now having a major impact on the market as more and more companies launch or extend their thin film silicon PV production with Oerlikon's patented micromorph® technology. Oerlikon Solar is committed to the highest quality of customer support and is taking concrete actions today to ensure that its resources and delivery capabilities grow to meet the rapid expansion of the thin film solar marketplace.
